I picked up an all stock 2004 Road King Classic, and I'm really enjoying it. She has 5,100 miles, but I put another quick 400 miles on it over the weekend.

A few observations:

I'm noticing a soft whir sound in 4th gear only. I'm not sure if it's a problem; actually I kinda like it. It lets me know I'm in 3rd, not 4th in town. It's absence also lets me know I'm in 5th on the highway, not 4th. Of course, when I hear the whir, I know it's 4th. Is this 4th gear whir common on Road Kings?

The front brake is a little weird. The brake engages near the end of the handle travel. Also hearing a soft rubbing sound up front, like the pads are rubbing on the rotor. There are no burn or score marks on the rotor, no signs of excess heat, and there seems to be plenty of brake pad material. Do the brakes need to be bled maybe? Just dirt?

Sometimes it's really hard, even impossible to shift into neutral - just pops right past into 1st or 2nd. This gets worse as the tranny warms up. Is this common? Or a symptom of something?

I'm planning on V&H Monster Ovals, Big Sucker I, and PC3-USB, maybe get it installed this weekend. And yes, I have the HD shop manual on the way too.

Are there any neat upgrades you good folks can think of for a 2004? Anything I should be aware of?

Any and all ideas/opinions much appreciated!

JR

 

nice! not even broke in yet. you will enjoy it

 

Congrats on the new ride!

Can't help much on your questions, but I was also having trouble with my bike not going into neutral. Technician said the clutch cables needed to be adjusted...had that done with my 5K service and it was fine afterwards.

 

Nice pickup. Enjoy!

 

Nice bike! Your brakes should start working near the beginning of lever travel, not at the end. Get that checked out, you need the front brakes to work perfectly.

 

Cool dude enjoy.

 

Nice low mileage 04.
My front brakes have always done that. I've tried real hard to fix it, but everyone tells me it's normal, that the pads are always in contact with the rotors.
I'll listen tomorrow to my 4th gear, but not sure about the whine. I think 4th gear on 5 speeds is the hardest working gear based on secondary road speed limits. Seems like you spend most of your time under 55 in that gear.
Hope you got a real good deal. First owner must have decided did not like riding or something.

 

Nice bike, sounds like the normal sounds HD's make.

 

Sweet! Enjoy your new ride

 

Do you know what kind of trans fluid the previous owner used??? Try switching over to Redline trans fluid with shockproof. That sometimes quiets down the "normal" trans noises and shifting issues.